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Post by Von K on Apr 16, 2021 13:34:42 GMT -5
Thanks for joining us, Jim! Really enjoying the series so far, and I'm glad to see it still going strong! Would you ever consider bringing back any of the old Marvel Conan allies, such as Isparana or Zula? I think it would be fun to see them again. Thanks for the suggestion! It would be fun to have them appear in a future story, but I'm honestly not sure when it would work with my current plans. I am planning to move to different parts of the Conan timeline at some point, so that may be when it might fit best, as a 1 or 2-parter flashing back or forward back to that period of Conan's life. Welcome to the forum Jim. It’s great to see you here. Graphic novel sales seem to be doing remarkably well in spite of the pandemic. If Savage Sword seems too ambitious for the current market, do you think there might be a chance of Marvel running a Conan title in graphic novel format, at least as an initial one off to test the water?
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Post by emerald on Apr 16, 2021 17:04:24 GMT -5
Pleased to hear that Land of the Lotus will stretch out over five issues. Will Conan remain in Khitai for a while thereafter?
Can you tell us some of your favorite stories/moments/scenes in Conan comics to date?
Any specific Conan yarns in comics or prose that you find particularly inspiring?
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Post by Erik on Apr 16, 2021 18:06:13 GMT -5
Thanks for joining us, Jim! Really enjoying the series so far, and I'm glad to see it still going strong! Would you ever consider bringing back any of the old Marvel Conan allies, such as Isparana or Zula? I think it would be fun to see them again. Thanks for the suggestion! It would be fun to have them appear in a future story, but I'm honestly not sure when it would work with my current plans. I am planning to move to different parts of the Conan timeline at some point, so that may be when it might fit best, as a 1 or 2-parter flashing back or forward back to that period of Conan's life. I think that could work - It'd be a nice throwback to the 80's and 90's comics when some of those characters appeared. Anyway, keep up the good work! Always good to see someone who knows the character.
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jimzub
Wanderer
a thief, a reaver, a slayer
Posts: 24
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Post by jimzub on Apr 17, 2021 7:39:53 GMT -5
Graphic novel sales seem to be doing remarkably well in spite of the pandemic. If Savage Sword seems too ambitious for the current market, do you think there might be a chance of Marvel running a Conan title in graphic novel format, at least as an initial one off to test the water? Marvel's current publishing system - scheduling, budgeting, marketing, you name it - is still built around the 'single issue to trade' model. They put together a few original graphic novel experiments several years ago, but they've been few and far between. I personally think it's a 'chicken and egg scenario' - they don't truly commit to a line of graphic novels so people don't seek them out, and because people don't seek them out they don't sell so they don't do anymore. In any case, the last couple they did were for Spider-Man and the Avengers, so if those didn't do well enough to expand out to more titles they won't do something like that for a character like Conan, even with the character's rich literary tradition. On top of that, Conan is a licensed title so Marvel's profitability on it is lower than on the superhero books they completely own. If they are going to dip their toe back into original graphic novels it makes sense for them to focus that on properties they own completely. Is it possible? In theory, sure, but all signs point to 'no'.
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jimzub
Wanderer
a thief, a reaver, a slayer
Posts: 24
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Post by jimzub on Apr 17, 2021 8:47:27 GMT -5
Pleased to hear that Land of the Lotus will stretch out over five issues. Will Conan remain in Khitai for a while thereafter? Can you tell us some of your favorite stories/moments/scenes in Conan comics to date? Any specific Conan yarns in comics or prose that you find particularly inspiring? I can't say whether Conan stays in Khitai as that would spoil some story stuff in those issues...suffice to say that I would love to build out other corners of the Hyborian Age. The Thomas-Buscema run after Bêlit joins the monthly book up through her death (Conan the Barbarian #59-100) is a really sharp period of the series for me, along with a lot of the old school Savage Sword black and white masterpieces. So much of that b/w artwork is still jaw-dropping to me. I send the art teams I'm working with material from there all the time as reference because I want to try and get that sweeping sense of storytelling into our stories. The Busiek-Nord issues at Dark Horse are really inspiring and managed to re-tell the classic stories in a really appealing way. In terms of the original REH stories, Red Nails and Queen of the Black Coast are my favorites. I like when Conan has allies/foils to push off of, not just himself in isolation against threats. I would like to jump forward with the timeline and tell some Conan and Bêlit stories at some point. I wrote her in the Conan-Red Sonja mini-series with Gail Simone, but it was quite brief so I'd like to delve deeper.
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Owen
Wanderer
Posts: 24
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Post by Owen on Apr 17, 2021 16:11:25 GMT -5
Anyway, I wanted to give people here a place to ask me questions about writing Conan or just feedback in general without side-lining the ongoing series thread that already exists. I'll answer as honestly as I can, though obviously there may be some subjects I can't cover in detail. Thank you for taking the time to do this, I have to say I greatly enjoy your work! Could you tell us a little about how your drew your inspiration to develop the story in the Asian-inspried setting? Were there any particular historical or mythological antecedents you drew from to develop Heng?
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Post by mindboggled on Apr 18, 2021 13:18:42 GMT -5
It's great to have you on here Jim. Welcome! I've liked your material so far, and I think your really getting a superb handle on the character with the latest arc.
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Post by Von K on Apr 18, 2021 19:34:29 GMT -5
Graphic novel sales seem to be doing remarkably well in spite of the pandemic. If Savage Sword seems too ambitious for the current market, do you think there might be a chance of Marvel running a Conan title in graphic novel format, at least as an initial one off to test the water? Marvel's current publishing system - scheduling, budgeting, marketing, you name it - is still built around the 'single issue to trade' model. They put together a few original graphic novel experiments several years ago, but they've been few and far between. I personally think it's a 'chicken and egg scenario' - they don't truly commit to a line of graphic novels so people don't seek them out, and because people don't seek them out they don't sell so they don't do anymore. In any case, the last couple they did were for Spider-Man and the Avengers, so if those didn't do well enough to expand out to more titles they won't do something like that for a character like Conan, even with the character's rich literary tradition. On top of that, Conan is a licensed title so Marvel's profitability on it is lower than on the superhero books they completely own. If they are going to dip their toe back into original graphic novels it makes sense for them to focus that on properties they own completely. Is it possible? In theory, sure, but all signs point to 'no'. Thanks for the clarification Jim, and thanks for generously taking the time out of your busy schedule to interact with us here.
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jimzub
Wanderer
a thief, a reaver, a slayer
Posts: 24
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Post by jimzub on Apr 19, 2021 8:38:13 GMT -5
Thank you for taking the time to do this, I have to say I greatly enjoy your work! Could you tell us a little about how your drew your inspiration to develop the story in the Asian-inspired setting? Were there any particular historical or mythological antecedents you drew from to develop Heng? I did a ton of research on Japanese supernatural stories for Wayward, the modern-supernatural comic series I worked on from 2014-2019, and even though that was Japanese-centered, it led me to a bunch of different resources on Asian-themed myths and creatures which have proved helpful. I re-read all the Khitai appearances in the Conan comics over the years and also read the Conan Tabletop RPG sourcebook on Khitai put together by Mongoose Publishing in 2008. The idea of a bandit-king is not a new one and it definitely riffs on material from Arabian Knights and other Conan stories over the years. I wanted to give that old concept a bit of a supernatural twist and thought that having wild rumors of Heng's power get set up and payoff in an unexpected way could keep readers on their toes. You'll have to read #21 and 22 to see how that all fully plays out though. I also sent Cory a ton of ref images from the old comics along with more modern incarnations like the Conan video games and board game (cover art below) so he could keep the look consistent overall while still having room to add his own visual flare to it.
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jimzub
Wanderer
a thief, a reaver, a slayer
Posts: 24
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Post by jimzub on Apr 19, 2021 8:42:11 GMT -5
It's great to have you on here Jim. Welcome! I've liked your material so far, and I think your really getting a superb handle on the character with the latest arc. Thanks so much! I know how passionate the REH fanbase is and want to please them as much as please myself. It's commercial creative work done for clients (Marvel and Conan Properties), so not everything gets to be under my control but making the most of this opportunity and creating stories I'm proud of is still the end goal. The current run of issues feels like all the pieces are really coming together and I'm hopeful we can keep that momentum going with support from readers.
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Owen
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Post by Owen on Apr 19, 2021 15:18:48 GMT -5
The idea of a bandit-king is not a new one and it definitely riffs on material from Arabian Knights and other Conan stories over the years. I wanted to give that old concept a bit of a supernatural twist and thought that having wild rumors of Heng's power get set up and payoff in an unexpected way could keep readers on their toes. You'll have to read #21 and 22 to see how that all fully plays out though. It certainly did pay off well, I though that it was an excellent twist. Looking forward to the forthcoming issuses! Thank you very much!
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Post by boot on Apr 19, 2021 17:01:46 GMT -5
If there's an artist you think is perfect for the series, feel free to let me know.... Greg Ruth!
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Post by danieljames495 on Apr 19, 2021 23:04:32 GMT -5
If there's an artist you think is perfect for the series, feel free to let me know.... Greg Ruth! You know I somehow didn't even realize it but yes! Greg Ruth's issues during the original Dark Horse run were great, I always looked forward to them.
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jimzub
Wanderer
a thief, a reaver, a slayer
Posts: 24
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Post by jimzub on May 12, 2021 8:54:47 GMT -5
I hope you all enjoyed today's new issue! Let me know what you think and if you have any questions.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 12, 2021 14:24:19 GMT -5
Picked this up today, Meiwei certainly proves to more than the timid Scholar found in the last couple of issues. Looking forward to the rest of the story arc.
Will Conan head west after his adventures in Khitai? If so, will he encounter the nomadic tribes of the Hyrkanian steppe? It could, potentially be where Conan first learns to master the bow among the Hyrkanians. I'd love to see your version of Conan's early years among the Hyrkanians/Turanians leading eventually to the Queen of the Black Coast years and beyond.
Thanks for bringing us back Conan.
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